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County corrections staff report 55% successful community-supervision closure, commissioners press for more data
Summary
Sedgwick County corrections staff told commissioners adult community corrections closed 653 cases in SFY24 with a 55% successful closure rate; commissioners asked for more breakdowns of the 293 unsuccessful closures and 29 new felony charges and probed how 'success' is defined and tied to KDOC funding.
Sedgwick County corrections staff presented year‑end adult community corrections outcomes and told commissioners the program’s primary metric is avoiding state prison. "Our definition for this program is they didn't go to prison because that's why community corrections exists," staff said, explaining KDOC ties outcomes to funding.
The presentation reported 653 case closures in SFY24; 293 were flagged as unsuccessful and 29 involved new felony charges. Staff said the county’s recent successful-closure rate was 55%, up from 52% the year before. Commissioners pressed for detail: one asked for a breakdown of the 29 new felony charges and whether those were victim crimes; another noted the state goal of 75% and questioned its origin.
Staff described a shift toward more coaching-style supervision using EPICS risk-assessment tools, random audits and a continuous quality assurance team, and a partnership with Justice System Partners and a National Institute of Justice grant to support organizational coaching. The county also reported using incentives—targeting about four positives for every one negative—in addition to referrals to partner treatment providers.
Commissioners said the county should analyze how many people were harmed when supervision failed. "If you subtract out all the other small cities, you end up with a pretty low number for what's in the unincorporated county," a commissioner said about STRs; on corrections, a commissioner asked whether the unsuccessful outcomes had produced victims and urged staff to bring victimization breakdowns. Staff agreed to provide further data on the types of new felony charges, victimization details and county‑to‑state comparisons. The KDOC report is due Oct. 1 and will be routed for the chair’s signature per prior authorization.
